Rolling mill unit



Oct. 29, 1940. A. sxMoNs ROLLING MILL UNIT Filed Feb. 8, 1957 INV ENTORabraham ,3: 1110115 BY (KM 1 ATTORNEYS Patented Oct. 29, 1 940 UNITEDSTATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

My invention relates to a new and improved rolling mill unit.

One of the objects of my invention is to pro-"- vide a mechanism whichwill embody improve- 5 ments'over that shown in application Ser. No.58,631 filed by me in the United States Patent Oflice on March 12, 1936.Reference is made to said previously filed application for full detailsof the general invention, as the disclosure herein l is-confined to thespecific improvements over the method and mechanism disclosed in saidappli cation Ser. No. 58,631.

Another object of my invention is to provide a device which will beextremely simple to manu- 15 facture and install, and which shall beuniform and reliable in operation.

Other objects of my invention will be set forth 'in the followingdescription and drawing which illustrate a preferred embodiment thereof,it be- .20 ing understood that the above,statementof the objects of myinvention is intended'generally to explain, the same without limiting itin any manner. Fig. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the im- 25proved unit.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 2-2 of Fig. 2.

The invention is applicable to the cold rolling of metal strip, such assteel strip or strip made 30 of any other metal. It also applies to hotrolling. The main object of the invention is to roll said strip so as toproduce rolled strip of substantially uniform thickness and width, sothat it will be unnecessary to trim the edges of the rolled strip 35 formaking various articles in which it is necessary to have metal strip ofuniform-width. Referring to Fig.1, the metal strip- I is led from anysuitable reel or other source, between metal plates 2 and 2a which areadjustably connected to each other by means of pins 3,- havk ing springsI mounted on the shanks of said pins. The pins 3 connect the metalplates 1 and 2a so that said plates can move relative to each I other,and thesprings 4 force said plates 2 and 5 2a. towards eachother withany desired regulated or adjustable force. Said pins 3 havev removableheads which can be connected to said pins. The plates 2 and 2a'have dryfriction linings I6 and IGa made of leather or other suitable material,50 and they therefore act' as an adjustable friction brake for retardingthe feed of the metal strip I. 5

As shown in Fig. 2, the strip, I is led around .a first roll 5, and thenunder and around a secand roll 6. These rolls 5 and 6 are mounted on 55shafts 5a and 6a and said shafts have pairs of intermeshing gears 'I'and 8. The gears I may be flxed'to the adjacent endfaces of the roll- 5,or, if desired, the gears I and the roll 5 could be integral. The gearsI 'and the roll 5 can turn freely on the shaft 5a. If desired, gears 1and 5 roll 5 can be keyed to shaft 5a, which will turn in unison withsaid roll 5.

' It will be noted that the gears l and 8 v are provided on both sidesof the'rolls 5 and 6,in order to provide extremely positive and reliablemeans for causing said rolls totum in unison. Said rolls Sand 6 are ofequaldiameter although the invention isnot to be limited to thisrelation.

Said rolls turn at the same peripheral speed.

The roll 8 and the gears 8 are keyedto the shaft 611. The shaft 60. isprovided with a sprocket 9. An endless chain In meshes with the sprocket9, and with a sprocket II, which is mounted upon the shaft I2. Thechain. III clears the gears 'I and 8.

After the strip leaves the roll 6, it passes be- I tween 9. pair ofplates I4 and Ila which do not exert a braking actionupon the strip andmerely lubricate the faces of the strip. The inner surfaces of theplates I4 and Ida are lubricated by any suitable lubricating medium suchas oil or the like, so that the members It and Ila have little or nobraking action.

The members I4 and Ida have their inner sur faces provided with acontinuous supply of oil or other lubricant so that .the faces of themetal strip I have films of lubricant thereon, after they leave theplates I4 and Ila. 'For this purpose, the plates I4 and Ila are providedwith absorbent linings I5 and I503 These linings may be made of felt soas to absorba suflicient supply of oil or other liquid lubricant. Thesupply of lubricant may be renewed whenever necessary.

Thelubricated strip now passes between the I first rolling unit, whichcomprises the rolls I I I1 and Ila are of the same diameter and theysoare driven at the'same speed. They may have diflperent diameters, aslong as they have the common peripheral speed of the reducing rolls ITand Ila.

Hence the stock or strip l is fed at exact and predetermined regulatedspeed towards the rolling unit or units and said speed is less than thelinear speed of the peripheries of the rolls l1 and Ha.

The device shown can be readily applied as an attachment to any standardrolling mill. 1 The stock is therefore retarded wholly anterior thefirst pair of mill rolls or pressing rolls. Behind the first pair ofmill rolls, the stock is driven through the mill wholly' by succeedingpairs of mill rolls.

By having a plurality of retarding .rolls 5 and 6, the braking force ofplates 2 and 2a will be multiplied in accordance with the number ofretarding rolls. I can use more than two retarding rolls and they can beof diameters as large as is desired, in order to prevent any slipping ofthe stock relative to the retarding rolls.

The governed retarding of the speed of the stock depends upon the rateof reduction of the stock in the mill.

The mill canhave any number of rolling units in addition to the firstpair of rolls l1 and Na.

It has heretofore been proposedto retard the feed of the stock towardsthe rolling mill, by means of a friction clamp. However, such clampimposed only a slight frictional drag upon the stock, just enough tokeep it straight-anterior to the mill. Since the stock varies inthickness and hardness, a uniform braking effect could not be secured,of suflicient'strength and uniformity and precision, to control theincrease in width of the stock which is caused by the rolling.

In order to control the increase in width of the stock during therolling thereof, it is necessary tosupply the stock to the mill by meansof feeding mechanism which has an operative feeding speed which musthave an exact and constant ratio to the speed of the rolls. According tothe invention, the feed of the stock can be regulated with greatprecision, so that the increase in width of the stock during the firstpass and during subsequent passes can be kept as low as is desired, andthe stock may even be rolled without increasing its width. By keepingthe increase in width of the stock sufliciently small, during therolling, the rolled stock has substantially uniform edges and it is ofsubstantially uniform width. Likewise, the crowning of the rolled stockcan be substantially eliminated, so that the rolled stock has flatplanar faces, instead of havin arched faces. The slight frictional dragof plates 2 and 2a can be multiplied as much as is desired by having twoor more retarding rolls of sufficiently large diameter. In theembodiment shown, the strip contacts with about threecork or the like,and I may use other means which are used in connection with steel belts,in order to prevent any slipping between the metal 2 and 2a, due todifierences in hardness and thickness of the metal strip, will notafiect the uniformity of the feed of the stock towards the rolling mill,since the force which is applied to the retarding rolls by sprocket 9 ismuch greater than the braking force of plates 2 and 2a.

Even if there is a' quick drop in the braking force of the plates 2 and2a, the metal strip will not slip relative to the retarding rolls,because said strip is bent around a suflicient number of retarding rollsin the manner shown, so as to prevent any substantial slipping. Itrequires some force to bend the metal strip around the retarding rolls,and this resistance to bending creates a. retarding frictional force, soas to preventany slipping of the stock relative to the rolls, evenif theretarding effect of plates 2 and 2a is very small. 1

By using a sufiicient number of retarding rolls, the braking device 2and 2a can even be eliminated, since the bending of the strip around therolls will supply the necessary drag. In such embodiment, the rollswhich are anterior to the last roll, constitute retarding means.

Likewise, the pressure of plates 2 and 2a can be adjusted so as toprovide a frictional drag which will not'drop below a certain minimum,

mon drive could be used for the mill and for the retarding roll orrolls, if the force of the drive exceeded the drag of the retarding rollor rolls, as regulated by the anterior braking device, if such device isused.

' The peripheries of rolls 5 and 6 maybe sumciently close to each other,so as to exert-pressure on the strip between said rolls. Said pressurecan be sufficient further to make the strip move in unison with therolls, but without diminishing 'the thickness of the strip.

I have shown a preferred embodiment of my invention, but it is clearthat numerous changes and omissions can be made without departingfromits spirit.

I claim:

1. In combination with a rolling mill having reducing rolls, a retardingroll over which the stock is adapted to be led in curved form, saidretarding roll being located anterior to the mill, toothed meansactuating said retarding roll simultaneously with said reducing rolls sothat the peripheral speed of said retarding roll is uniformand lessthanthe peripheral speed of said reducing rolls, and supplemental retardingmeans anterior to said retarding roll, said stock being actuated behindthe first pair of reducing rolls. wholly by succeeding reducing rolls;

2. In combination with a rolling mill having reducing rolls, a pluralityof retarding rolls located wholly anterior to the reducing rolls of saidmill, a friction brake anterior to the retarding rolls, said retardingrolls being located 76 2,219,664 so that a metal strip which passesthrough said friction brake can be bent in opposite directions aroundsaid retarding rolls and then be led to said reducing rolls, toothedmeans actuating said retarding rolls at the same peripheral speed andsimultaneously with said reducing rolls, the 'peripheral speedof saidretarding rolls being less than the peripheral speed of the reducingrolls, said stock being actuated behind the first pair of reducingrolls, wholly by succeeding reducing rolls.

3.'An attachment for a rolling mill having driven reducing rolls whichare mounted on shafts, said attachment comprising a plurality ofretarding rolls located wholly anterior the first pair of reducing rollsof said mill, said retarding rolls being located so that the stock isled around said retarding rolls in curved form, toothed drive meansoperated from the shaft of the first pair of reducing rolls andoperating said retarding rolls at the same peripheral speed, saidperipheral speed being less than the peripheral speed of'the first pairof reducing rolls, and a friction device anterior said reducing rolls,said stock being actuated behind the first pair of reducing rolls,wholly by succeeding reducing rolls. In combination with and anterior arolling mill which has reducing rolls; retarding means adapted to retardthe movement of the stock, rotary means located wholly intermediate thefirst reducing rolls and said retarding means, said rotary means beingshaped to contact with the stock and to press against the stock so as tocreate suflicient friction between the stock and said rotary means toprevent any substantial slip between the stock and the rotary means,said rotary means being located so that the stock contacts in curvedform with said rotary means and common toothed drive means for saidrotary means and said reducing rolls and adapted to operate said rotarymeans simultaneously with said rolls and at a lowerperipheral speed thansaid rolls, said stock being actuated behind the first pair of reducingrolls, wholly .by succeeding reducing rolls.

ABRAHAM SIMONS.

